I woke up this morning with that old song running through my head and soon finding its way to my lips. I can't remember the last time I even heard that song. But this morning, I made biscuits, poured coffee, prepped homeschool lessons . . .
. . . and as I worked I sang:
Count your blessings
Name them one by one
Count your blessings
See what God has done
Count your blessings
Name them one by one
Count your many blessings
See what God has done!
It's contagious, you know . . . singing those catchy tunes. Pretty soon, my boy-child was singing the song with me. And my firstborn, leaning over her math book, looked up and rolled her eyes and said, "Mom! Look what you've started!"
I had to smile. Because it's exactly the thing I want to start! I want to start them counting their blessings, naming them one by one. I want them to think through every one - every single blessing, big or small.
Like all those biscuits cut out one-by-one. The whole lump of dough was more than any one of us could digest. But one biscuit at a time? One biscuit at a time sat scrumptious on our tongues. One biscuit at a time was something we could chew on. One biscuit at a time satisfied our hunger and prepared us for the day ahead.
Ann says it in her book, and I concur: "There is a way to live the big of giving thanks in all things. It is this: to give thanks in this one small thing. The moments will add up." She continues, "...slapping a sloppy brush of thanksgiving over everything in my life leaves me deeply grateful for very few things in my life . . . life-changing gratitude does not fasten to a life unless nailed through with one very specific nail at a time." (Ann Voskamp, One Thousand Gifts)
Yes.
And so I continue the counting . . . one small thing, one big thing, each individual thing. . . one at a time.
1031 fruit trees in full bloom
1032 quiet, rainy mornings
1033 sleepy kids snuggled under blankets
1034 jugs of spring water
1035 waking to the sound of rain
1036 Sabbath
1037 celebrating with husband and kids
1038 rainy days still . . . after a year of drought
1039 sweet, sweet potatoes
1040 strawberries, mangoes, and avocados in salad
1041 singing this song in church
1042 hearing my kids sing that same song over and over at home
1043 homemade cheesecake
1044 licking the bowl! =)
1045 her waterproof cast
1046 neighborhood friends signing her cast
1047 picking him up after work
1048 the simple clean-up that follows a crock-pot dinner
1049 writing
1050 her excitement
1051 this new book
1052 salt air and sea spray
1053 Spring Break road trips
1054 lunch with neighbors who have become friends
1055 enjoying them so much!
1056 sandy feet
1057 rocking chairs on a porch overlooking the water
1058 picking strawberries . . . row after row
1059 three buckets full!
1060 hearing them say again and again, "That was so much fun!"
1061 rain boots in the mud
1062 cinnamon coffee and dessert
1063 hearing her stories of Damascus
1064 seeing the orthodox man in his yalmulke and tzitzit at the rodeo
1065 finding a sweet treat that was safe for her
1066 all those cowboy boots in one place
1067 a bus driver who went the extra mile
1068 sweet kitty sitting out front waiting when we got home
1069 her cast and how it reminds us . . . sometimes God uses the hard things
Taste and see that the LORD is good . . . Psalm 34:8
. . . and as I worked I sang:
Count your blessings
Name them one by one
Count your blessings
See what God has done
Count your blessings
Name them one by one
Count your many blessings
See what God has done!
It's contagious, you know . . . singing those catchy tunes. Pretty soon, my boy-child was singing the song with me. And my firstborn, leaning over her math book, looked up and rolled her eyes and said, "Mom! Look what you've started!"
I had to smile. Because it's exactly the thing I want to start! I want to start them counting their blessings, naming them one by one. I want them to think through every one - every single blessing, big or small.
Like all those biscuits cut out one-by-one. The whole lump of dough was more than any one of us could digest. But one biscuit at a time? One biscuit at a time sat scrumptious on our tongues. One biscuit at a time was something we could chew on. One biscuit at a time satisfied our hunger and prepared us for the day ahead.
Ann says it in her book, and I concur: "There is a way to live the big of giving thanks in all things. It is this: to give thanks in this one small thing. The moments will add up." She continues, "...slapping a sloppy brush of thanksgiving over everything in my life leaves me deeply grateful for very few things in my life . . . life-changing gratitude does not fasten to a life unless nailed through with one very specific nail at a time." (Ann Voskamp, One Thousand Gifts)
Yes.
And so I continue the counting . . . one small thing, one big thing, each individual thing. . . one at a time.
1031 fruit trees in full bloom
1032 quiet, rainy mornings
1033 sleepy kids snuggled under blankets
1034 jugs of spring water
1035 waking to the sound of rain
1036 Sabbath
1037 celebrating with husband and kids
1038 rainy days still . . . after a year of drought
1039 sweet, sweet potatoes
1040 strawberries, mangoes, and avocados in salad
1041 singing this song in church
1042 hearing my kids sing that same song over and over at home
1043 homemade cheesecake
1044 licking the bowl! =)
1045 her waterproof cast
1046 neighborhood friends signing her cast
1047 picking him up after work
1048 the simple clean-up that follows a crock-pot dinner
1049 writing
1050 her excitement
1051 this new book
1052 salt air and sea spray
1053 Spring Break road trips
1054 lunch with neighbors who have become friends
1055 enjoying them so much!
1056 sandy feet
1057 rocking chairs on a porch overlooking the water
1058 picking strawberries . . . row after row
1059 three buckets full!
1060 hearing them say again and again, "That was so much fun!"
1061 rain boots in the mud
1062 cinnamon coffee and dessert
1063 hearing her stories of Damascus
1064 seeing the orthodox man in his yalmulke and tzitzit at the rodeo
1065 finding a sweet treat that was safe for her
1066 all those cowboy boots in one place
1067 a bus driver who went the extra mile
1068 sweet kitty sitting out front waiting when we got home
1069 her cast and how it reminds us . . . sometimes God uses the hard things
Taste and see that the LORD is good . . . Psalm 34:8